Gyles Farwynd
Biography In the year 265 AA, Erik Farwynd, Lord of the Lonely Light, and his rock wife Cyrenna Saltcliffe welcomed their firstborn child and heir to the world. Though a gale blew from the north-west, off the vast Sunset Sea, Lord Erik took his son to the shores, throwing up a shoulder against the savage winds and the airborne spray blown off the roiling sea. Behind him trudged a priest of the Drowned God and two acolytes, their robes flapping madly in the storm. Lord Erik braved the waves and, when waist deep, submerged his newborn in the water. The priest would take the infant and deliver the kiss of life while his acolytes prayed, and the boy awoke quickly. The priest pronounced him to be baptised, and a strong lad besides. The tenets of the Drowned God would forever be woven into his education as a future lord, his father saw to it. He, like the other Farwynds of the Lonely Light, would become a fanatic follower of the Drowned God. By 271 AA, at the age of six, young Gyles sailed with his father throughout the islands surrounding the Lonely Light-- there were eight, his father named them the Lesser Lights. His father taught him of the sea, of the winds. He learned of life on a ship, and of the adage that every captain was a king aboard his own vessel. Lord Erik taught him to row, to raise and lower the sail, to steer the ship, to read the waves and the currents. He became a seafarer, as any ironborn. Gyles’ time with his father grew short, however. In 285 AA King Cotter I Goodbrother called Lord Erik and his ships to his reaving of the Reach, an endeavor from which Lord Erik would not return alive. His ships returned, bearing his corpse. The rites were given, and Lord Erik would be committed to the sea with a sacrifice of fifty thralls taken from the shores of the Reach. Scarcely before he could rest, however, trouble beckoned. In time, Lord Gyles would himself be granted the opportunity to try himself on a reaving. Five years into his reign, Lord Harlaw would launch his reaving of the Riverlands. Simultaneously Lord Drumm and Lord Greyjoy launched reavings to the south, and Prince Goodbrother to the north. Owing to his aunt’s marriage to Lord Greyjoy, Gyles sailed with his uncle to Fair Isle and there joined in the plunder of the lands of House Farman. The battles were fierce, as the King on the Rock, Tyran, brought all the fury of the West to them-- yet King Tyran lay dead at the end, along with many score of his men. Gyles fought on solid earth at Fair Isle for the first time, cleaving the skulls of many poor Western boys with his war axe. One disadvantage to being the westernmost of the Iron Islands is the sheer distance between the Lonely Light and the main chain of islands-- eight days’ sailing time to the untrained or uninitiated sailor. In the course of many long trips between Lordsport and the Lonely Light, Gyles learned as his father and his father’s father the currents and tendencies of the wind along that stretch of ocean. Over time this developed into a keen awareness of the ocean’s temperament and how best to travel alongside it rather than against it-- he became an expert navigator. Lord Gyles would attend the Hollow Kingsmoot in 298 AA, an enthusiastic supporter of Andrik Greyjoy citing their blood ties. However, rather than in disappointment Lord Gyles left Old Wyk with a sense of reverence-- he had witnessed something holy, the Drowned God’s rejection of all candidates. When the Kingsmoot would next convene, he promised himself to be open to whomever the Drowned God may choose. Timeline 265 AA: Born to Erik Farwynd and Cyrenna Saltcliffe 271 AA: Began regular ventures with his father throughout the Lesser Lights 285 AA: Assumed the Lordship of the Lonely Light upon the death of his father in the Great Reaving of 285 AA. 290 AA: Joined his cousin Andrik Greyjoy in the reaving of Fair Isle, participates in the battles against the Westermen. 298 AA: Attends Hollow Kingsmoot. Family Tree * Erik Farwynd (d. 285) * Cyrenna Saltcliffe (d. 287) ** Gyles Farwynd ** Helya Farwynd nee Botley (Rock Wife) (b. 268) *** Erik Farwynd (b. 281) *** Olya Farwynd (b. 283) *** Ela Farwynd (b. 285) *** Alyn Farwynd (b. 287) ** Dale Farwynd (Brother) (b. 267) ** Alanna Farwynd nee Sparr (Sister-in-Law) (b. 270 d. 290) *** Irana Farwynd (b. 288) *** Dalla Farwynd (b. 290) ** Meera Farwynd nee Blacktyde (b. 265) *** Gylbert Farwynd (b. 292) *** Unnamed Farwynd Girl (b. 294 d. 294) ** Gwin Goodbrother of Crow Spike Keep nee Farwynd (Sister) (b. 268) ** Ravos Goodbrother of Crow Spike Keep *** Their kids ** Qarl Farwynd (Brother) (b. 270) ** Esgred Weaver (Sister-in-Law) (b. 274) *** Aeron Farwynd (b. 292) *** Taya Farwynd (b. 294) * Yara Farwynd (Aunt) * Aeron Greyjoy (Uncle) ** Their kids Supporting Characters Sylas Sea-Blood, Drowned Priest (Archetype: Zealot) Sylas Sea-Blood was present three-and-thirty years ago to baptise Lord Gyles, though only a young acolyte of the Drowned God at the time. He has weathered many a storm, and the marks of the sea are evident on his person-- from skin weather-beaten and salt-dried to eyes shot through with blood, lips cracked by seawater and hands stiff as leather. His counsel is among the most important in Lord Gyles’ court, if not the most important. As a conduit to the Drowned God Himself, Lord Gyles is never far from Sylas Sea-Blood. Qorgon the Healer (Archetype: Medic) Qorgon wandered the Iron Islands, venturing from Great Wyk to Pyke, Old Wyk to Harlaw. His time at Drumm Keep lead him to Oldtown, where he joined in the plunder of the Citadel. While there, he took for a thrall a maester who taught him much of the art of healing. Such were his skills that he began to be called the Healer, which he tired of and moved on from Drumm Keep. When at last he arrived at the Lonely Light, his maester thrall had long since perished. He retained his skills, however, and would be retained at the Lonely Light in the service of its lord. Roggon the Rotten (Archetype: Reaver) Roggon’s reputation can be demonstrated in his moniker-- the Rotten. Roggon grew up on a Lesser Light and became a captain under Lord Erik, a reaver legendary among the small community of the Lonely Light and its surrounding islands. When Lord Erik perished, it was Roggon’s men who returned his body aboard Roggon’s ship the Iron Blood, and it was a feat that Lord Gyles rewarded with a continued captaincy and a place high in his court. Alyn the Fair (Archetype: Ship Captain) Alyn is an interesting character. His love of the sea is unmatched, and he is seldom as happy on land as he is on the deck of a ship. His sailing acumen and his mastery of ships has earned him a warship in the Farwynd fleet, the Sunchaser. Though some whisper of him being soft or feminine, Alyn has in the past removed the tongues of those whisperers. Instead, men now call him Alyn the Fair-- both a compliment and a mockery, depending on who says it. Category:Ironborn Category:House Farwynd